


Distance

by EmmaDrozen



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe, Bells, Dimension Travel, Festivals, Fireworks, High School, M/M, Magic, Mutual Pining, Sakura (Cherry Blossoms), Soulmates, daisuga - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-23
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-13 11:47:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,027
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29650866
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmmaDrozen/pseuds/EmmaDrozen
Summary: When Koushi Sugawara attends an annual festival of mystical origins, he meets another boy his age, literally bumping into him. They spend the day together and sparks fly. When the festival ends at dawn, however, Daichi Sawamura mysteriously vanishes.Will Suga ever see him again?Will they discover the truth about the festival and manage to overcome incredible odds to be together?
Relationships: Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi
Comments: 3
Kudos: 6





	Distance

Chapter 1

In the spring of my second year of high school, my friends invited me to go with them to the city for the annual festival that was held there. We lived a few hours away and I’d never been able to go before due to other engagements. I was so excited that I could hardly concentrate on my classes the next day, tapping my feet and fiddling with my pencil.

“Are you alright, Suga?” I jumped when a hand settled on my shoulder, looking up into concerned, brown eyes.

“Hey! Asahi! Sorry, I was just thinking about tomorrow. What are you doing in here?” I asked, looking around the nearly-empty classroom. “Oh, is it lunchtime already?”

We made our way outside, where Asahi was nearly tackled by an enthusiastic first year who had joined the volleyball team. The other two first years were close behind, shaking their heads at him.

“Nishinoya! Get off him!” Ennoshita called.

“Aren’t you guys excited for the festival tomorrow?” Nishinoya hopped along beside us as we walked to our usual table, pulling our lunches out. I forced myself to eat, despite how my stomach twisted with anticipation. The rest of the day passed in a similar fashion, with me quietly counting the minutes until, suddenly, I was in bed, imagining what the next day would bring.

~~~

When I parked my small, blue car in the expansive lot, I sighed deeply and pulled the key from the ignition. Asahi, Nishinoya, Ennoshita, and Narita climbed out of the car, groaning and stretching their legs. We had all chosen to wear ordinary clothing, mostly so that we were comfortable on the long drive to and from the festival.

“Thanks for driving, Suga,” they all crowed.

“I’m the only one with a car,” I chuckled as a climbed out of my own seat, closing the door with a snap and leading the way toward the festival grounds. I could see the tops of hundreds of tents that spanned a wide area reserved for such events just on the outskirts of the city. The colorful fabric was bright against the pale blue sky, twisted streamers and lines of dull lights crisscrossing the paths between the stalls. I had heard others talk about this festival, about how it felt magical in a way that others didn’t. My feet moved faster, slapping against the ground as I sped closer. The others were close on my heels.

There were shows and performances throughout the day, making me glad that we’d gotten there early enough to see so many. We’d left before it was light out, desperate to get there by mid-morning and pack in as much time at the festival as possible. It took place once per year, beginning at dawn and ending at dawn the next day. It was one day and one night of delight and wonder.

It was early afternoon when our stomachs started grumbling. Nishinoya convinced Asahi to join him for barbeque while Ennoshita and Narita agreed to get crepes. I was itching for some spicy ramen and wanted to do some shopping, so we agreed to meet up later, separating at a large crossroads that was crowded with people.

Several minutes later, I was holding a ceramic bowl that was black with silver flowers twisting across the surface. I held it between my fingers, letting the warmth from the broth seep into my hands. I was sipping noodles from the bowl when something broad bumped into me, spilling the remaining soup down the front of my shirt. I fell backwards onto my butt, watching my bowl tumble toward the ground. A hand reached out to catch it just before it shattered, holding it out to me. My eyes travelled across the fingers, up the arm, to a face with dark eyes that made me feel like I could get lost in them forever.

“I’m so sorry about that! Are you okay?” His voice was deep, confident. He seemed to be about my age, wearing dark jeans and a black jacket that fit his broad shoulders well. My heart fluttered and I tried to focus on his words.

“Yeah, sorry about that! I must have not been looking where I was going! Thanks for saving my bowl, though,” I laughed, reaching for it. The boy reached out with his other hand and I took it gratefully, letting him pull me to my feet with an impressive amount of strength. His hand was warm and rough, fingers wrapped tightly around mine. It felt like the crowds around us faded for a moment, until I looked down at our hands. He quickly released my hand and rubbed the back of his neck, the hint of a blush on his face as he laughed.

“No, it’s my fault! Will you let me buy you a new shirt? I was just walking over to do some shopping anyway and I’d hate for you to have to walk around covered in soup for the rest of the festival,” he said.

“Well, I just happened to be heading that way myself, but I’ll only accept on one condition,” I told him, holding up a finger. His brow furrowed beneath his short, dark brown hair. It was an adorable expression that made my heart thump. “You tell me your name.”

“Oh!” He appeared relieved. “I’m Daichi Sawamura. You can call me Daichi. What’s your name?”

“I’m Koushi Sugawara. My friends call me Suga.”

“Nice to meet you, Suga!” He smiled wide, eyes squinting as he did. It was so dazzling that I had trouble forming a response, blushing when I realized that I was staring.

“Nice to meet you, too, Daichi,” I said quietly.

I fell into step beside him as he led the way to the shopping stalls, gazing at the clothing that was on display. Small talk was surprisingly easy, as if we’d known each other for years.

“How about this?” he asked, holding up a sunset orange shirt.

“I like it! Orange is one of the colors of my volleyball team’s jerseys, too,” I felt at the soft fabric, admiring it.

“You play volleyball, too?” Daichi asked excitedly. “I’m mostly defense, but I think I might have a shot at being captain next year. What position do you play?”

“I’m a setter,” I replied, grinning. “Our mascot is the crow!”

“That’s fantastic! Ours are crows, too!”

“We should just merge them and play together.”

“I bet we’d make a good team,” he said with a wink.

I gaped at him, gasping out a small laugh as he paid for the shirt and asked for a space for me to change. Afterward, I put my soiled shirt in a bag with my bowl and walked out of the tiny dressing room, half expecting Daichi to have disappeared into the mass of people. To my surprise and my delight, he was waiting, leaning against one of the thick poles that was holding the tent up.

“Hey! That looks great on you!” he said with a grin, straightening.

“Thanks!” I looked away, sure that my cheeks were bright red. “Want to keep shopping with me? I haven’t looked around the rest of these stalls yet.”

“Of course! I’m having fun with you.”

“Did you come alone?”

“Not exactly.” I looked up to see him rolling his eyes. “The pair that I came with got a little busy, though. It’s this first year who’s obsessed with a girl in my class, but I’m pretty sure that she’s a little into him, too. My other friend couldn’t make it either because she failed a test and got grounded. We come every year together, but this is the first time I’ve been wandering around on my own.”

“Well, maybe after shopping, we could grab a bite? I didn’t get to finish my ramen, after all,” I teased. Daichi groaned exaggeratedly.

“Aw, come on, Suga! It was an accident!” I laughed and nudged his shoulder as I passed, leading the way down the crowded aisle.

“You can just buy me dinner, too, and maybe I’ll stop teasing after I buy dessert!”

“Sounds like a deal, as long as we don’t miss the lights and the fireworks – those are my favorite parts of the festival!” Daichi caught up to me, walking so close that our hands brushed against one another, making me blush again.

We spent the rest of the day shopping, buying a few trinkets here and there, before I dragged Daichi back to the food stalls. We bought a variety of foods that we could eat while we walked, continuing to explore the festival as we ate.

While we were in line for some ice cream, I saw an old woman sitting behind a table in a small, purple tent. She was staring with sad eyes, looking between Daichi and me, shaking her head. Her wrinkled mouth moved and it was as if there was a lull in the chaos around us, allowing her words to reach my ears as if I was standing right beside her.

“Oh, I’m afraid that won’t end well for you two.”

Suddenly, Daichi was pulling me through the crowd before I could think to point out the woman. All I could think about was how it felt to have my hand encased in his.

“They’re about to light the lights! I know a great spot to watch!” He stopped abruptly and turned, causing me to bump into his chest. He wrapped his free arm around me, catching me as I stumbled. I looked up at him, breath hitching when I realized how close our faces were. Our noses were inches away from each other and I could feel his heart beating beneath my fingers splayed out on his chest.

“At least I caught you this time,” Daichi said with a smirk, but his voice was too soft, his eyes too intense. He held me for another few moments before clearing his throat and slowly shifting, turning so that we stood side by side. His arm moved up to lay across my shoulders and I found myself leaning against him.

“This is incredible!” I marveled. We were standing on a hill at one edge of the festival, just high enough to look out over the tents and the city beyond. Several couples and families were sitting on blankets beneath the blooming cherry blossom trees that lined the small ridge. Soft, pink petals fell around us like snow as the last bit of sunlight was fading.

As if by magic, the strings of lights that I had seen earlier burst to life, starting at the center of the festival and expanding outward like a wave of brightness. There were so many, making the very air glow and vibrate with a sense of magic.

There were cheers throughout the festival, everyone celebrating the illumination as the sun set completely behind the skyscrapers in the distance. The sky grew dark above us, stars winking into existence.

Then a boom! Fireworks – brilliant explosions of color against the velvet night, one after another in a chain of wondrous eruptions.

I watched them, eyes wide and mouth agape. They seemed to fill the sky, entrancing me. I tore my gaze away to get a glimpse of Daichi, only to find him staring at me. His eyes were glowing, a small smile on his face. Our eyes locked and I couldn’t look away, feeling the warmth bubbling up inside my chest and spreading to my face.

The rest of the people around us faded into the background. I was hyperaware of the crack and hiss of each firework, of Daichi’s arm around my shoulders, of my arm pressed against him. I could feel how his breaths shuddered in his chest, see how he glanced down at my lips, hear his sigh as he looked back into my eyes. His own lips parted and I nearly cried at how beautiful they looked when we were so close.

“Koushi,” he whispered, feather-soft. “Is it crazy…?”

He trailed off, looking unsure of himself, brow furrowing again. I reached up to touch his cheek lightly with the fingertips of the hand that wasn’t pressed between our bodies.

“No, it’s not,” I assured him, whispering back. “I don’t know what it is, but I feel something.”

“Oh, good,” he sighed in relief, squinting as he smiled widely again. I considered for a moment, wondering if I should meet those smiling lips with mine and cement it as the best night of my life.

Just as I decided to risk it, I heard a loud voice that I recognized. I twisted, searching. I saw Asahi and the first years emerging from the tents, though it was obvious that they hadn’t seen me yet. I grabbed Daichi’s hand and pulled him through the cherry blossom trees toward the other side of the festival. He didn’t question me, just followed, sliding to a stop between two tents when I did.

“Sorry, I saw the guys that I came with and I just know that if they saw us, we wouldn’t get a moment’s peace for the rest of the night,” I told him, rolling my eyes.

“You don’t want them to meet me?”

“Nope, I want to keep you all to myself!” I grinned and grabbed his hand again in a sudden burst of confidence, chuckling at the way he blushed. “They can meet you later. Let’s play some games!”

The rest of the night passed like a dream. We laughed and teased each other as we played carnival games and ate ice cream. The crowds were starting to thin just before dawn, when the bells would ring and announce the end of the festival. Daichi and I were walking hand-in-hand when he stopped beside a dark blue tent that was decorated with painted cherry blossoms, reminding me of standing beneath the trees with him. He took a deep breath, sticking his free hand in his pocket.

“So, I saw this and thought of you. I bought it, even though we just met. You don’t have to wear it, or even keep it, if you don’t like it. I like you. I want to keep in touch and, well…” Daichi trailed off, rubbing the back of his neck. “Sorry, I’m rambling now. I’ll just give it to you.”

He pulled out a small, paper-wrapped package and handed it to me. Before I opened it, I pulled out a similar one and handed it to him.

“I got you something, too. Let’s open them at the same time!”

He nodded, grinning, and we both tore into the brown paper. I held up a silver chain with a small pendant of a crow in flight. I gasped, delighted, and a bit amused. I looked up to see Daichi laughing, holding a similar necklace. A black bird with silver details hanging on a black cord.

“We match!” he exclaimed as he slipped it over his head. I smiled as I clipped the chain around my neck, admiring the enamel pendant.

Daichi took my hand again and I looked up to gaze into his eyes, letting myself get lost in those dark pools again. It was like an embrace all its own, comfortable and warm as the hands that he grasped mine in.

I started, realizing that the sky behind him was starting to lighten. Just as the lights started at the center of the festival, so did the bells. It sounded like a cacophony of different sized metal bells, somehow coming together to make music that raised goosebumps on my arms. As the sound expanded outward in a wave, the lights were snuffed out as well. As the last bulb faded, I turned to ask Daichi about breakfast.

He was gone.

I looked down at my hands. How had I not noticed his slipping away? It seemed like the other boy had just vanished into thin air. I touched the necklace, the crow pendant that sat on my sternum between the edges of a sunset orange shirt collar. Evidence that I hadn’t imagined the entire thing.

“Suga! There you are!” Nishinoya slapped me on the back, as energetic as he always was. “Asahi got your text earlier. Can’t believe you ditched us!”

“Did you get a new shirt?” Ennoshita asked as they approached.

“I just…” I was still looking around, trying to figure out where Daichi had gone. “There was someone here just a second ago.”

“Oh, maybe it’s like that spooky legend!” Nishinoya laughed.

“What legend?” I asked, looking between him and the others.

“You gotta be careful!” He grinned, enjoying the attention. “There’s this legend that if you talk to strangers at the festival, they might just disappear as soon as the festival is over! One upperclassman told me that they’re aliens, but another one told me that they’re from another dimension. Another theory is that they’re ghosts who can only come during the festival.”

“Isn’t that like Halloween?” Narita asked.

“No, this is different because it’s not at night!” The two of them continued arguing as the group moved toward the car. Ennoshita and Asahi were discussing where to get coffee and who should drive first.

I kept looking back at the spot where Daichi and I had been standing together. I made a promise to myself.

I would be back next year, to see him again. No matter the distance.

* * *

Chapter 2

I searched every online database that I had access to, hoping to find any mention of Daichi or the school he had mentioned. No luck. They didn’t seem to exist.

After a while, I began reading through hundreds of posts about the phenomenon that existed at the festival. Many theorized that there was some sort of hallucinogenic drug involved, while others were convinced that there were ghosts haunting the grounds where the event took place. Most agreed that staying with the group you arrived with was the best option, in case you were lost to them forever. The festival had been taking place for hundreds of years, yet I couldn’t seem to find any sort of resource to reach out to with my questions. It was as if the festival just sprang into being each year, full of mystery and brightness, then disappeared again.

I wore the necklace every day. It was a reminder that I wasn’t insane as I counted down the days to the next festival.

Asahi and I became third years and I became the captain of the volleyball team, despite how Daichi filled my thoughts and distracted me. The team gained a couple new first years – a pair that had been friends since elementary school and worked well together. There was a lot of potential in them that we were able to bring to the surface, helping us get to Nationals, though we didn’t win the tournament.

All of a sudden, I was standing in front of the calendar in my room, staring at the red X’s I had been using to mark each passing day. The festival was tomorrow and I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to sleep because I was so excited. I hated to admit it, but I was also nervous.

What if he wasn’t there?

The next morning, I pulled into the same lot, this time out of the car before anyone else. Asahi and Nishinoya climbed out after me, the rest of the team stepping out of Ennoshita’s car several spaces away.

“I’ll meet up with you guys later!” I called over my shoulder as I walked quickly toward the tents, tugging at my shirt. It was the orange one that Daichi had bought for me. I had worn it in the hopes that it would help him pick me out of the crowd but now I wondered if it was too cheesy. My hand went to my necklace, tracing the edges of the pendant with my fingertips. It had become a habit that I did whenever I was nervous. I liked to imagine that Daichi was thinking of me, too, wherever he was, and it helped to ease my nerves.

I slipped through the crowds, which were growing by the minute, searching for the tent with the cherry blossoms. When I saw it, my eyes frantically scanned the people around it. I could feel my heart beating so hard that I feared it would leap from my chest. It slowed, sinking to my stomach when I didn’t see Daichi. I had imagined him standing in the same spot where we had been when the festival ended, waiting for me, but maybe I had gotten my hopes up for nothing.

The crowds shifted and it was like clouds parting. Warm, brown eyes met mine across the sea of people, lighting up with the same excitement that made my heart soar once again.

Daichi was here.

“Suga!” he called, raising his arms and smiling so wide that it seemed like his grin would fall off his face, eyes squinting. It was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.

I didn’t care who was between us. I ran directly to him, crashing into him with desperation and joy that I could hardly contain. I thought I would burst. As our bodies collided, I wrapped my arms around his neck and pressed my lips to his. I didn’t want to give myself the chance to hesitate like I had before. His arms wound around my waist, catching me and spinning me before we could fall. His lips moved eagerly underneath mine, hungrily kissing me back. When we finally separated, gasping for breath, he pressed his forehead to mine and closed his eyes with a sigh.

“I’ve been thinking about that for a whole year,” he said softly.

“So have I,” I whispered, trying to hold back tears. It was more than I could have hoped for.

“When the bells rang, you just disappeared. It was like magic.”

“The same thing happened to me! You were just gone and I had to remind myself that the whole thing really happened,” I said, hand moving to my necklace again. Daichi smiled when he saw it, pulling the necklace I had given him from beneath his shirt.

“I haven’t taken it off. I was afraid it might disappear, too.”

“That won’t happen, child.” We both turned to find the same old woman that I had seen the previous year. She was standing at the corner of the tent, leaning on a cane. I realized that we were standing behind the same tent I had seen her in when I first saw her staring at us.

“What do you mean?” Daichi asked.

“Trinkets bought from the festival will not vanish.” She turned and walked back around to the front of the tent.

“Wait!” I extricated myself from Daichi’s arms, grabbing his hand to drag him with me as I followed the woman. “I heard you say something last year, about things not ending well. What did you mean by that? What do you know?”

She gazed at me with such intensity that I took a step back, bumping into Daichi’s chest. He put a hand on my shoulder as to steady me.

“Please, will you tell us what’s going on with this festival, ma’am?” he asked, much more polite than I was. Her eyes moved to his face, scrutinizing it for several long moments before sighing and gesturing for us to follow her into her tent. Once inside, she let the flap fall closed behind us. The only illumination came from old lanterns that were set in the corners, throwing strange shadows against the walls.

“I have been here for a long time,” she began, settling into one of the seats and waving her hand at two more that were on the other side of a small table. We sat, listening quietly as she continued. “There is no avoiding the truth for you two, so I will tell you plainly. You are not from the same world, though they seem similar. The festival is a bridge, a time and place where your worlds overlap for a short time and it allows you to be together, but it will end each time the festival does.”

“Different worlds?” I said breathlessly.

“Yes,” she replied, smiling sadly. “It is why everyone vanishes at the end, the separating of the worlds once more.”

“What happens if we try to leave the festival while it’s still going on? Will we end up in our own worlds or is there some way to visit each other’s world?” It felt so crazy to be talking about it, but it made more sense than ghosts or aliens.

“I have heard stories that it is possible to pull a person to your world, but they will still return to their own when the bells toll.”

“So a relationship would be pretty difficult. That’s why you said what you did before.” I grimaced. It seemed that she was right.

“It will not end well because you can never be together, except for one day and one night each year.”

“Then I guess we’ll have to make that one day and one night count,” Daichi said firmly, grasping my hand and holding it tight.

The old woman gazed at him thoughtfully, then looked at me. Her eyes were such a pale blue that it felt like she was looking through us and into our souls. I couldn’t look away. She stood suddenly, making us both jump.

“I will do you both a kindness, something I have not done in decades,” she said as she dug under the table that stood at the front of her tent. It seemed that she sold small silver trinkets and jewelry when the flap was open. She turned back to us with a worn wooden box.

“Why?” I asked, a bit suspicious.

“I believe that you are soulmates. I believe you can prevail, if you choose, though it will be a hard road for you both.” She opened the box, revealing several pairs of miniature silver bells that were only about an inch long and the same circumference as my thumb. They seemed so delicate, but she snatched one of the pairs and snapped the box shut. “Keep a tight hold of each other and give me your other hand.”

We obeyed, reaching out with our free hand, palm up. She placed one bell into the center of each of our palms, holding it there and muttering under her breath.

“There,” she said, letting go. Daichi and I both brought the bells to our ears, shaking them gently. The ringing was very high-pitched, reminding me of a fairy, and louder than I expected. It seemed to echo in my head.

“What are they?” I asked.

“These will keep you connected. When one of you rings your bell, the other will hear, no matter the distance. You can use them to find each other when the festival is ongoing, as well.”

“These are incredible! Thank you!” Daichi bowed to her and I followed suit. We both reached for our wallets and she shook her head.

“No, you will repay me in time, I’m sure. Take them and go. Enjoy the festival – and each other.” She winked, pulling the tent flap open wide and taking a seat behind the table of wares. There were already people waiting to buy from her, greeting her warmly. Daichi and I slipped around the table, both of us taking one last glance at her as we departed.

We were quiet, walking side by side until we were standing on the hill, under the same tree as the previous year. We sat in the grass, wordlessly examining the bells and going over what the old woman had said.

“Soulmates,” Daichi said softly, looking at me. He smiled and my heart thumped.

“Isn’t it cruel of the universe to put soulmates in different worlds?” I asked. “All I can think about is how we won’t get to spend our lives together.”

“At least we get the festival,” Daichi replied, then he held up his bell. “And now we have these! We can work out a system of communicating. Maybe we can learn Morse code and talk all the time! If no one else can hear it, we can do it whenever we want.”

I smiled, spirits lifting. Maybe we could do it. It would be so difficult, but we could do it. I wanted to try.

We spent the rest of the morning working out a system of ringing the bells to indicate if we wanted to talk, if we were busy, or if we were just thinking of each other, at least until we could learn Morse code. When we stood to get lunch, I touched the bell gently where it hung on the chain around my neck, comforted by the way it clicked against the crow pendant. Daichi had put his on his necklace as well, relieved that the bell was small enough to not bother either of us during volleyball.

After eating, we watched some of the performances, clinging to each other’s hand as if we’d drift apart the moment we lost contact. I relished every second with him, often spending more time staring at his face than I did watching the performers. I caught him stealing glances at me whenever I looked away, staring at me with those big brown eyes that I couldn’t get enough of.

Just before sunset, we ran into my team. I groaned when Nishinoya spotted us, shouting at me as he ran through the crowd.

“Suga! Hey, where have you been!” He grinned when he saw Daichi, eyes flashing to our linked hands. “Oh, is this why you’ve been ditching us? Nice to meet you, I’m Nishinoya, Suga’s favorite underclassman.”

“I doubt that,” Ennoshita said flatly as he, Narita, and Asahi caught up with the shorter boy. “I’m Ennoshita and this is Narita.”

“I’m Asahi Azumane, but you can call me Asahi. I’m in Suga’s class.” Asahi seemed less nervous than usual, though I attributed that to Daichi’s calming presence. It was hard to be anxious when he was smiling.

“Nice to meet you all! I’m Daichi Sawamura, but please, call me Daichi.” He shook everyone’s hand, his left hand still holding mine.

“Where are Tsukishima and Yamaguchi?” I asked.

“Playing some games. They were arguing with a pair of first years from another school and getting all competitive.” Ennoshita glanced over my shoulder and pointed. “Actually, here come all four of them now.”

I looked in the direction he was pointing, spotting Tsukishima’s blond head high above the rest of the crowd. I could just barely see Yamaguchi beside him, with a dark-haired boy on the other side. Just as I was about to ask about a fourth boy, a small figure leaped so high that Tsukishima had to look up to glare at him. He had bright, orange hair and he appeared to be smiling, despite the expressions on the faces of Tsukishima and the dark-haired boy.

“Oh, those are actually my first years,” Daichi chuckled. “They’re on my volleyball team. What are the chances?”

“We just seem to have good odds,” I joked, nudging him with my shoulder. When he laughed, I forgot how to breath, smiling like an idiot with stars in my eyes.

When the four first years joined us, they barely stopped arguing long enough for introductions. I had never seen Tsukishima and Yamaguchi be so social.

“Daichi, you got new friends man?” A loud voice behind us made me jump, but Daichi just rolled his eyes.

“Right on time, Tanaka,” he said, turning to the grinning boy with short-cropped hair and the beautiful bespeckled girl beside him. “How does Kiyoko put up with you?”

“Lots of patience,” the girl replied in a quiet voice, making Tanaka laugh. After introductions, she looked around the group. “Where are you watching the fireworks from? We could watch them all together.”

“We could go over by the cherry trees,” Daichi suggested, shooting me a look from the corner of his eye. I nodded.

“Yeah! I wanna climb one of the trees!” Nishinoya shouted.

“Dude, me, too! Kiyoko never let me before! Let’s go!” The two of them raced toward the hill and the rest of us followed more slowly, laughing and chatting. It was nice to see how the groups mingled, making me wonder what life would be like if we didn’t have to spend most of our lives apart.

We reached the top of the small ridge just in time, watching the festival lights glow, brightness spreading until it reached our group. Everyone settled onto the grass, glad that we’d managed to find a space for our whole group to sit together. I blushed furiously when Daichi sat behind me and pulled me close, so that I was between his legs with my back against his chest. He wrapped his arms around my waist and rested his chin on my shoulder, a warm embrace that I sank into with a contented sigh. My hands travelled across his hands, his arms, fingertips tracing random, swirling patterns on his skin.

Just as before, the fireworks were incredible. This time felt different, though. Daichi and I were surrounded by friends, wrapped around each other and more certain of our future together, however strange it might be. A wave of warmth flowed through me, making tears spring to my eyes and blurring the vibrant explosions of light above us.

Daichi shifted slightly and I gasped when I felt his lips brush my ear.

“You’re beautiful, Koushi,” he breathed, sending a shiver down my spine. “I’ve never felt this way, like just looking at you sets me on fire and calms me, all at once. Holding you close makes me wish I could just stay here and never let you go.”

I twisted, turning to meet his face with mine. I kissed him like I was drowning and he was the only air I had left. I kissed him like we were trapped in darkness and he was the light chased the shadows away. With the fireworks in the background, I kissed him and I knew that I loved him.

When we paused to gasp for breath, I rested one hand against his cheek and he leaned into it, closing his eyes.

“I don’t want to let you go, either,” I whispered. “This is the happiest I’ve ever been. Hold me as close as you can until we have to part for another year.”

His face moved under my hand and he grabbed my wrist, kissing my fingers. His eyes opened and held mine, telling me everything I already felt. He loved me, too.

Too soon, the night was ending. We had packed as many memories as we could into those hours, but it still felt like they passed too quickly. The rest of our teams stood in two separate groups, waiting for us while we waited for the bells.

Daichi’s arms were around my waist and mine were around his neck. We were pressed against each other – foreheads, chests, hips – trying to hold on. With one last kiss, we listened to the chiming that meant our time together was over until next year. I smiled wide, despite the tears in my eyes, so that the last thing he saw would be how happy I was. He seemed to have the same idea, making that face that I adored with squinting eyes and the biggest, brightest smile I’d ever witnessed. Then he was gone.

I cried then, causing the team to rush to my aid, clamoring and asking where the rest of their new friends had disappeared to. While we walked to the cars, I shakily answered their questions, quietly explaining what the woman had told us and swearing them all to secrecy as tears rolled down my cheeks. As the tents faded into the distance in my rearview mirror, I knew one thing with every fiber of my being.

I would be back. Every year. I would see him again.

As I steeled my resolve for the year ahead, I heard a tiny ringing in my ear and smiled. A small cacophony of the most beautiful music. I reached for my necklace and rang it back the same way, ignoring Nishinoya’s jokes about the bell being broken. I knew that Daichi would hear it and know what it meant.

_ I love you. _

* * *

Chapter 3

After graduation, I moved to the city, working in a café while I went to school. Daichi and I were constantly ringing the bells, sending messages and checking in. He told me that he, too, moved to the city to work as a police officer.

As the festival date inched closer, it was obvious that we were both excited and nervous. We planned to test what the old woman had said about one of us pulling the other into our respective world. In the days leading up to the event, I cleaned my apartment from top to bottom and fussed over the furniture and decorations. It was silly, since I was sure that Daichi wouldn’t mind if I lived in a dump, but I wanted to impress him. I didn’t want him to regret devoting himself to someone that he could only see once per year.

Finally, the day had come. It was the first time that I would be there at dawn, when the festival began. I took a train to the edge of the city, then followed the rest of the crowd to the grounds where, the day before, there had been nothing. It was eerily quiet, with a sort of soft gray pallor over everything like a fog. People whispered as they filtered down the paths, as if hesitant to disturb anything.

The first rays of sunlight streaked across the sky, accompanied by the bells ringing. As it always did, the sound began at the center and spread outward to the edges. The fog seemed to lift and tents burst open, bright colors all around as the crowd swelled with incoming visitors.

I took a deep breath, turning toward the now-familiar dark purple tent. It was our meeting spot. I fiddled with the edge of my shirt, a rusty brown sweater over pale, tan pants. After a minute, I reached for my necklace and rang the bell that hung there. When I heard the echo behind me, I spun, just in time to catch a glimpse of Daichi as he swept me up in his arms and kissed me. I kissed him back, pulling away with a laugh after a moment.

“Not even a ‘hello’ before you get down to business?” I teased, punching him lightly on the arm. He groaned, pretending to be wounded.

“Not even a ‘hello’ before you beat me up?” he teased back. My heart fluttered. It was so different when he was here in front of me, smartly dressed in a white button-down and dark vest. I pressed my hands to either side of his face, squishing his cheeks and pulling his mouth back to its rightful place on mine. When I released him, his cheeks were bright red.

“Shall we go ahead and test it?” I asked, gesturing to the edge of the festival grounds. The border was obvious when one knew what to look for. A shallow ditch and a line where the grass changed, vibrant green inside and a duller color outside. “If it doesn’t work, we can just enjoy the festival.”

I didn’t say what I knew that we were both thinking: if it didn’t work, we would never be able to spend time together outside of the festival. It would be our own routine, eventually becoming mundane and boring.

Daichi nodded and I reached out to grab his hand. We strode toward the edge, working against the flow of people entering the festival for a day of carefree fun. Just before the edge, we paused. I could feel the hesitation bubbling inside me, making my stomach flip and twist. I looked back to see the old woman watching us, so I waved to her. She gave a sharp nod, which gave me the burst of courage that I needed.

“Here we go,” I said, taking a deep breath. I took the last few steps quickly, dragging Daichi behind me, as we’d agreed. When I was several feet past the border, I stopped, hardly daring to check if Daichi was with me. My hands were so cold with fear that they were numb and I couldn’t tell if I still held his hand in mine.

Warm, gentle fingers grasped my chin, pulling my face up until I was staring into the brown eyes that entranced me every time that I caught a glimpse of them. He brought our linked hands to his lips, kissing my knuckles before pressing my hand to his chest.

“It worked, Suga,” he said quietly, smiling widely.

“It worked,” I repeated. My face broke into a smile. “It did! It really worked!”

Daichi laughed as I threw myself at him, knocking him to the ground and landing in his lap. We basked in our success, delighted in the idea that we could show each other our homes, our lives, our worlds, even if only for one day.

“So, you wanna come home with me?” I asked, watching the blush spread across Daichi’s cheeks with amusement. He’d proven to be rather closed-lipped about more private matters and I had quickly found that flustering him was easier than I originally thought. It was quite funny, too.

I stood and pulled him to his feet, leading him to where we could take the train back to my apartment. As we walked, he pointed out small differences that he noticed, though I could tell how distracted he was by our interlocked fingers.

When we finally entered my apartment, he was nervously rubbing at the back of his neck and looking around. He paused, looking at all of my plants and soft furniture, examining the art on my walls.

“This is so pretty. I’m glad you went first.”

“Oh, wait until you see the bedroom!” I winked at him, making him groan and blush harder than before. I led him to one of the doors, pushing it open to reveal a large bed.

“Right, Suga, listen,” Daichi said, suddenly serious, but still blushing a bright red color that rivaled my sweater. “I want to make sure that you don’t think… I mean, I’ve never… I haven’t…”

He huffed, scratching at his head and grunting as if he couldn’t force the words out.

“Daichi, are you a virgin?” My family had always been very open about sex, so I had no trouble with talking about it.

“What? Well, I mean…” He sighed. “Yeah.”

“That’s fine. So am I.” He seemed surprised at my statement, looking at me with astonishment.

“How?” He shook his head. “I know how, but I mean, why? You’re so beautiful and amazing.”

It was my turn to blush, unused to blatant compliments as I was.

“Well, volleyball took up so much of my time during high school and now I have classes and a job. Plus, having sex is kinda counterproductive since I have a boyfriend in another world to be faithful to.” I fell silent, realizing that I had just called him my boyfriend.

“Boyfriend,” he said softly with a small smile.

Daichi reached for me and all of our anxieties seemed to melt away. We tumbled into the bed together, a year of hunger and desire making us desperate to consume one another. The hours passed, full of pleasure and comfortable company, enjoying each other in every way that we were ordinarily unable to.

I asked him a hundred questions, soaking in the sound of his deep voice. He wanted to draw me, sketching page after page while I told stories about the café. I took pictures on my phone, making silly faces and kissing Daichi’s face. He did the same. We spent so much time tracing every inch of each other’s skin with gentle fingertips, finding each scar and freckle like a piece of treasure. Daichi kept returning to the beauty mark on my cheek, kissing it with more tenderness than anyone had shown it before.

In the early morning hours, we dressed slowly and made our way back through the city to the festival grounds. We weren’t sure what would happen if the visiting person wasn’t inside the border when the festival ended, so we’d decided not to risk it. As we approached the brightly-lit mass of tents, our footsteps slowed and we gripped each other’s hand tighter. Crossing the border was almost a herculean act but we did it, walking until we were standing beneath the cherry blossom trees that we had come to adore.

Another year apart. We had proven that we could do it, but I hated saying goodbye.

Daichi pulled me close and I buried my face in his neck, wrapping my arms around him.

“I’ll miss you.”

“I’ll miss you, too,” he replied. He put his hands on my shoulders and pushed me back until he could look into my eyes. “I love you, Koushi.”

I felt like I was drowning in the dark pools of his eyes, overwhelmed by the warmth and love that I felt from this man in front of me. I couldn’t speak, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. Tears welled up in my eyes and I put my hands on his cheeks, trying to remind myself that Daichi was real.

“I love you, too, Daichi.” The words had hardly left my lips when he pulled me into another kiss, a deeper one. In the distance, I heard the bells begin to ring and I kissed the man in front of me with every ounce of love that I could muster. Then he was gone again.

~~~

The next several years passed in a similar fashion. Daichi and I continued to talk every day, using our bells to communicate. We kept each other updated on our lives, celebrating each other’s accomplishments and supporting each other through hardships.

We took turns visiting each other’s worlds, spending the day and night wrapped in each other and exploring each other’s lives. I took him to see my home one year and he took me to see his. We shared our difficulties with friends and family who didn’t understand why we refused to date, our struggles with daily life without each other. We tried to pack a year’s worth of affection and contact into twenty-four hours.

Eventually, we learned that we didn’t need to be within the festival’s borders at dawn. The visitor would be transported back to the last spot that they had been, just within the border.

Occasionally, we spent time at the festival after meeting up, always stopping by to see Moira in her dark purple tent. We always kissed under the fireworks, just like we had years before.

~~~

After almost twenty years of our unconventional relationship, it was an ordinary day less than a month before the festival when I felt that something was wrong. It was just the inkling of a sense, the moment when goosebumps raise on your arms and the back of your neck before you know why.

All of a sudden, I heard the ringing in my ear. Daichi was shaking his bell in the cacophony that meant “I love you” but he wasn’t stopping. The ringing continued for nearly a minute, making me grasp at my head and ring my own bell, trying to ask what was going on. He didn’t answer, just kept ringing it continuously.

_ I love you. I love you. I love you. _

Then there was nothing.

I froze, fighting the panic that was clawing its way up my throat and making tears fill my eyes. I shook my bell. No response. It couldn’t be.

I spent the rest of the day frantically calling for Daichi, ringing my bell until my wrist hurt and my head pounded from the noise. I wouldn’t accept what I knew must be the truth. I couldn’t.

I kept trying for days. I took time off work, curled up in my bed and waiting for a response, dreading the silence. I didn’t want to sleep in case I missed a message from him.

When the day of the festival came, I rushed to the grounds, eagerly searching the crowds for the familiar shape of his shoulders, the familiar flash of his smile, the familiar warmth of his eyes.

Instead, I found a woman waiting for me, with straight, black hair and glasses. She seemed familiar.

“Koushi Sugawara?” she asked. “I’m Kiyoko Shimizu.”

“Oh, I met you a long time ago,” I said. She nodded. I kept looking around. “Where’s Daichi? Is he alright?”

“That’s why I’m here. He told Ryu and me about the magic of this place and about you and your world. He gave us an envelope with instructions…” Her voice cracked and she took a deep, shuddering breath.

“Instructions?” I was still in denial. I knew what she was going to say but I was playing dumb, hoping that I was wrong.

“Instructions in case something happened to him…”

“What happened?”

“He was on duty. There was an accident. He threw his partner out of the way and saved his life but got injured in the process. They rushed him to the hospital, but it was too late. He regained consciousness for less than a minute before…”

I turned away from her, not sure where my feet were taking me until I was standing beneath the cherry blossom trees again. The spot where I had first realized that I loved him. The spot where he had first told me that he loved me, where I had told him the same. The spot where I had kissed him countless times, never realizing how short our time together was. Standing there alone felt wrong, incomplete. It made me want to cry, to shout, to scream at the sky that would never feel bright again without him beneath it with me. I dropped to my knees and let the tears flow freely down my cheeks, ignoring the stares of passing festival-goers.

“Do you regret it?” I didn’t turn. I didn’t want Moira’s soul-searching eyes boring into me as she claimed that she had warned me of this fate back when we first met.

“Leave me alone,” I mumbled. I grasped at my necklace, clutching the crow pendant and tiny bell in one hand.

“Answer me first. Do you regret loving him?”

“Of course not!” I twisted to glare at her. “Daichi was the best thing to happen to me. He was my soulmate. I loved him – no, I love him. I will always love him.”

“Good,” she replied with a nod, seemingly satisfied with my answer. “Keep that necklace with you always. Keep coming here. Remember him.”

With the last of her sage advice, she hobbled away into the sea of people, leaving me heartbroken and alone.

~~~

Years passed. I knew that Daichi would want me to keep living, despite how heavy my heart felt without him. Everything seemed too quiet, too empty. I continued ringing my bell, pretending that he was still there, listening as I whined about my coworkers and relayed exciting news. It became a habit, though many thought it was just a nervous tick.

I continued going to the festival each year, sitting beneath the cherry blossoms and watching the fireworks. Fresh tears watered the trees each time.

When I got devastating news from the doctor, I couldn’t bring myself to feel sad. As illness ate away at me, I became so weak that I could hardly walk. It was the night of the festival when I clutched the crow pendant and bell close to my chest and closed my eyes. I could feel it.

I imagined that day when I first felt that spark deep inside of me, when Daichi and I stood together on the hill with soft pink petals from the cherry blossoms falling like snow around us. I kept my eyes closed, remembering that moment.

Then it was different. I felt a hand, so familiar, gently lifting my chin. I squeezed my eyes tighter, wondering why my own memory was failing me, when a voice in my ear almost made me collapse.

“Suga, open your eyes.”

“No,” I whispered.

“Koushi… I’ve missed you.”

My eyes snapped open and I was falling into the warmth of those brown pools that I loved once again. He looked the same as he had when we met.

“I’m dreaming,” I said softly, looking down at myself. I was young again, too.

“Nope, it’s magic.” Daichi grinned at my skeptical expression. “Moira had to explain it a few times before I believed her, too. The festival is a whole community that’s in its own world! Apparently, because we fell in love here and had the bells, we can stay.”

“Stay?”

“Yes, forever.” He pulled me close. “Together, Koushi.”

“We can finally be together.” I seemed to only be capable of repeating what he said.

“I waited for you, praying you’d keep the bell with you so that I could see you again. I’m so glad you did.”

“Daichi,” I said softly. My fingertips traced his face and it finally seemed to be sinking in that this was real. How could I doubt the magic of the festival when it had already given us so much? “Daichi, I love you.”

“I love you, too, Koushi.”

At that moment, there was a loud pop as the first firework of the night lit the sky in an explosion of color. Daichi wrapped his arms around me and smiled, eyes squinting. I thought my heart would burst from my chest, sure that I had never been happier. Then Daichi kissed me and I had to correct myself with a small chuckle.

Together. Forever.

One world, with no distance between us any longer.


End file.
